The first prototype of the Dornier 17 flew in 1934 as part of a competition to provide Lufthansa with a passenger plane that could fly passengers around western Europe. However, its fuselage proved to be too slim for passengers but its military potential was soon spotted. The plane’s narrow fuselage gave it the nickname ‘flying pencil’ and the first military variant flew in 1935. It was capable of flying with a 1,102 lbs (1500 kg) bomb load and with most German warplanes of this time, saw service in the Spanish Civil War in 1937.

The first public appearance of the plane was at a military air show near Zurich, also in 1937. Here it proved to be an agile and manoeuvrable plane – when it is taken into consideration that it was designed as a bomber.

The Luftwaffe valued the plane as was shown by production levels for the plane at the start of the war. 1,700 Dornier 17’s were built between 1939 and 1940. It made its mark in the attack on Poland in September 1939 and its versatility was such that it was used as a bomber, reconnaissance plane and as a pathfinder by the Luftwaffe. Its limitations were shown in the Battle of Britain, however, when it became clear that the plane was very vulnerable to attacks from the rear and from below and that its defensive armaments were poor. As with other German bombers, against a poor air force, the Dornier 17 did well and the Luftwaffe clearly was over-confident as to its capabilities. Against the formidable opponents of Fighter Command, the Dornier 17 was a lot more vulnerable.